Wonderland Expedition

Having admired and enjoyed Alex CF's cryptozoological specimens, I was elated to find an Alice in Wonderland Prop that a fan (absinthetic) of his work had made. My girlfriend loves Alice in Wonderland and I had just finished making my Vampire Killing Kit, so I figured I could use some of the knowledge I'd gathered on previous projects to make her an amazing gift!

I wanted to combine a handmade box and an Alice in Wonderland theme to house all the trophies that had been recovered from an expedition there, so I started thinking about what I liked from Alice in Wonderland and I always remember the crazy tile floor right after she fell down the rabbit hole, so I decided to incorporate that into my lid design! I made the box out of Maple, Purple Heart and Jatoba.

Inside the box there was an assortment of artifacts lifted from the pages of Carrol's novel. The contents included a sample of water from the Pool of Tears, Eat Me/Drink Me bottles, a singing sunflower, multiple roses that were in the process of being painted red, a key, and two card specimens: one painter and one guard. 

Here is a video of the box in action! I put a switch in the lid so it would play music when the lid is opened!

Arrr! X marks the spot, Matey!

I designed a Code of Brethren book to house a bottle of Rum for a teacher I had enjoyed taking several English classes with, and it was a running joke throughout the semester that I was a pirate because of my Pirate of the Caribbean belt buckle! Any kind of project or paper, I'd try and throw in a couple of nautical terms just for laughs. I had been watching Pirates of the Caribean at Worlds End, and I loved the over sized "code" book, so I based my project loosely on that. I always liked the look of the cursed Aztec gold coins, so I cut one out of craft foam using several layers. I also was privy to an awesome tutorial that made this project possible! Creepy old book making, by Dave Lowe! I probably would not have tackled this project without remembering this awesome tutorial! I happened to pickup several fake books from Michaels, so I used that as the framework! I redesigned a Jack Daniels label and put a bottle inside the book because that happened to be my instructors drink of choice! The book also played music when it opened!

Here is a video of the finished book and part of my Final project. 

I also decided to add a little soundtrack to my Scary Terry bucky! Yo Ho Yo Ho! =) 

Vampire Killing Kit

Inspiration for this project began when I saw a frame/shadowbox that had several stakes, cloves of garlic, and vials of holy water and it said break in case of vampire. I decided to make a box lined in velvet that would contain all the articles needed for killing the un-dead!

Ouija Board

Designed my own Ouija board using Adobe Illustrator. Font is Adams Family ( I believe ) and I used the original Ouija board design for the corners. Printed design out onto paper and traced the image with carbon paper and then painted using Paint Markers. 

Devious Concoctions!

Not for the faint of heart! We recently scoured the Seven Sea's in search of the most illustrious concoctions this side of the Indies! We have procured Dragons Breath, Aeternus Eternus Luminarium (eternal sunlight) and Eye of Newt. This will make an excellent addition to our Cabinet of Oddities and Curiosities! These sun jars were made to go outside and all of them house a solar light in the lid! 

'ello,.... Poppet!

Here at the Dismal Trader we only offer the finest antiquities salvaged from the darkest regions of the imagination. Ouija Boards, Coffins, Canopic Jars, Witch Potions, Curious Concoctions, and swagger pilfered from horrific realms! Watch as our current Proprietor rebuilds, reconstructs and creates your darkest desires!